CLEVELAND — In his first season as Pittsburgh Steelers left tackle and his first in the NFL, Dan Moore Jr. probably lost more than he won.
But he did win big in two important matchups against Cleveland Browns All-Pro edge rusher Myles Garrett. In two games mostly facing Moore, Garrett had just one sack.
Moore said he feels that the winning efforts against Garrett can be a building block for him as he attempts to put up a more consistent second season.
“That first game was a bit of a blur,” Moore said. “After the first game, I played him, things kind of got easier, got a little bit slower. I started to realize not everybody is him. I kind of took that game as like a learning curve. …
“That second game, I just got to studying him as a player, recognizing his rushes, trying to know what he was gonna do against me and how he rushed.”
Thursday night, Garrett will likely mostly match up against Moore for the third time, and the veteran edge rusher — probably the best in the league while T.J. Watt is out — won’t be an easy out the third time.
“It’s just knowing the type of player that he is, the type attributes he has, things that you have to respect the bottom and using everything that I got to my advantage,” Moore said.
Thursday, when the Browns move Garrett around, it will be a rookie in Alex Wright replacing injured Jadeveon Clowney. That’ll be a new challenge for Moore.
“The way I think of it is, it’s just me versus me,” Moore said. “My technique and knowing what I have to execute, more things that I need to work on.”
In 2021, the Steelers used an efficient short passing game with Ben Roethlisberger to move the ball on offense. That’s gone, and if the team is going to improve its mediocre offensive performance from the first two games Thursday night, Moore handling Garrett is going to have to be a part of the equation again.